ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s breadbasket province Punjab is reeling under severe floods as overflowing rivers Chenab, Ravi, and Sutlej have submerged more than 2,300 villages, leaving at least 30 people dead and over 1.5 million affected, the Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) confirmed on Saturday.
The deluge, fueled by record monsoon rains and water releases from upstream India, has crippled rescue operations and forced mass evacuations across northeastern Punjab. Officials warn the threat will worsen as fresh rainfall coincides with peak river flows at major headworks. Since June 26, Pakistan’s nationwide monsoon death toll has climbed to over 830.
Punjab Relief Commissioner Nabeel Javed said 481,000 residents had been rescued, while 511 relief camps, 351 medical camps, and 321 veterinary camps were operating in flood-hit areas. Over 405,000 livestock have also been shifted to safer ground.
The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) dispatched emergency food rations to Sialkot and Narowal, two of the hardest-hit districts, and more consignments are being sent to Hafizabad, Chiniot, and Jhang.
With water levels rising dangerously at Ganda Singh Wala on the Sutlej and Balloki on the Ravi, authorities fear the situation could escalate further, testing Pakistan’s fragile disaster preparedness.
